cmcsfandomcom-20200213-history
Great Thornia
Great Thornia, also known as the Realm of the East or even the Kingdom of Great Thornia, is a political union of the city of Palus Urbem within the Palus Capital Territory, Goruid, and Aphthonis, and the management of the Thornia Maritime Company. All these territories are in a personal union under the rule of Clarence. At least two top-level jurisdictions (Palus Urbem and Goruid) are within the League of Palus, with one (Goruid) being a member in its own right. As of late, all territories of Great Thornia are increasingly functioning as one cohesive country with Goruid and Palus Urbem being areas where laws of the League are enforced. The capital of Great Thornia is Elysia, though royal court is occasionally held in Palus Urbem. Etymology The term Great Thornia is the collective name of the component territories and the political body (secretariat) governing it. It is also used to link the states with the former Despotate of Thornia. An informally used term is Realm of the East, which is used to refer to a combination of the territories in personal union. It is commonly used when describing the shared economic and industrial output of territories. History Establishment On 1 January 2020, the Secretariat of the Joint-States of the East was established to coordinate the governance of all territories under Clarence's personal rule. The Secretariat and its related institutions were grouped under a pseudo-state known as Great Thornia on 5 January 2020. Consolidation of the realms (mid January 2020 - Present) Efforts across several fronts have been made to ease the difficulty of governing several territories under one government. In Goruid, work on improved infrastructure has been done to connect nearly all settlements in the northern half of the peninsula to Elysia. The Galinisian Islands have historically only been accessible by sea (and more recently by air, but it is considered far too costly). A nether portal was created on the island but so far, it has been impossible to find a path from the Elysia portal to the Galikoilada portal. A major naval expedition on 19 January in the south of Goruid set out to reconfirm outdated records of the environment in the region. It managed to rediscover the lost village of Baoratovia (which had been renamed to Daga or Meridia on newer maps). However, the expedition determined that the southern half of the Goruid peninsula was far too remote and expansive to govern from Elysia. The Secretariat instead decided that before concluding on whether the area should be abandoned, there should be an attempt to govern it via other means. The Coral Islands were discovered and named during the same expedition. It was determined that they would be accessible by sea from the Galinisian Islands. The main island, Guardian Island, was captured by force from a pillager garrison. The mainland territory of Aphthonis was reduced to only the coasts after the South Goruid expedition. The Secretariat has determined that the core territories accessible via Elysia and/or Galikoilada would be the most realistic area that could be controlled. The passing of the Goruid Act on 21 January 2020 in Goruid recognised Great Thornia as joint-suzerain with the League of Palus. This was the first legal document to recognise Great Thornia as a nation. Meridia (South Goruid) was separated from the state of Goruid and became its own jurisdiction within Great Thornia. In late January, Great Thornia's military forces were formally consolidated as the Royal Iron Guard. Most of its forces are iron golems dedicated to domestic security, but more importantly to fight off pillager raids. Politics Government The ruler of all the component realms holds the positions of King (head of state and government, and commander of the Royal Iron Guard). The King holds the nominal positions of Governor of Goruid and Mayor in Palus Urbem, though in effect those territories function as zones where laws of the League of Palus are enforced. The Secretariat of the Joint-States of the East (the Secretariat, sometimes referred to as the Crown) was the former formal governing body and civil service of Great Thornia. The Secretariat was largely responsible for the national food supply, urban development, welfare, and policing. It was later merged into the Crown of Great Thornia, which is directly chaired by the King. Policing operations were delegated to the Royal Iron Guard, which is also commanded by the King. The government is based in Elysia, though the monarchy does not yet have a palace there. Most government business is conducted in the Elysia Town Hall and the Royal Manor House (the main residence of the King in Elysia). Occasionally, court is held in the Royal Palace in Palus Urbem. Foreign relations Great Thornia is a neutral country, though the Goruid region is within the League of Palus (a military and economic alliance). The Goruid Act of January 2020 has given the government of Great Thornia the power to pursue its own foreign relations over the league in the event that the league works against its interests. This act was made without consultation with the league, though no protest was lodged against it. The nation's buoyant internal trade and self-sufficient industrial and agricultural activity allows it to remain relatively isolated from major upheavals in the global economy. However, the government of Great Thornia intends on reversing this by directly involving itself in the development of other league member states and also foreign nations like Tyavyli. Under its former incarnation (the despotate), the nation formed limited diplomatic relations with Tyavyli and as of February 2020, Tyavyli is financially indebted to Great Thornia. Military Great Thornia's de jure neutral status and Goruid's membership in the League of Palus work in opposing directions, meaning that in the event that the league's military alliance is triggered into action the forces of Great Thornia would have to be involved anyway. The Goruid Act of January 2020 would give the Great Thornian government legal proof for its refusal to be involved in a league conflict. The remnants of the historic Umic Navy and the South Seas Company militia gradually merged and morphed into the militia of the Despotate of Thornia. This force was the key pro-Umic, then pro-Holy States, and then pro-League belligerent in the Pillager War, an insurgency across the northern half of the Goruidian peninsula. With the dissolution of the despotate and the formation of Goruid, the militia's command was transferred to Goruid. Its command was transferred again to that of Great Thornia when Goruid entered a personal union with several other territories outside of the League of Palus which did not have their own form of protection. In early January 2020, a Goruidian maritime militia conducted a survey and expedition of the southern half of the Goruidian peninsula and the southern seas. It was engaged in several skirmishes around Baoratovia and later, in the capture of the Coral Islands from pillager forces. In late January 2020, the Crown of Great Thornia formed the Royal Iron Guard (RIG) as a formal replacement of the informal militias of the past and as a deterrent against the rest of the League of Palus in response to other member states' lack of involvement in the Pillager War. The RIG's formation also saw the merger of the navy, elytrists, and artillery production units. Economy Great Thornia is largely economically independent of the rest of the League of Palus. However, the initial policy of the Crown is to build up industry to mass-produce products for sale across the world. This has led to rapid development in infrastructure around the capital, Elysia. With this new infrastructure, much of the local population grew exponentially, leading to the city finding internal trade to be dramatically more profitable than external trade. This has brought unimaginable riches to the Crown and has allowed Great Thornia to maintain a level of independence not exercised by other members of the league. Agriculture and timber Both Goruid and Palus Urbem are the second largest producers of wheat in the League of Palus, behind Xandu. Pumpkin farming and bonemeal production is now one of the more important agricultural sectors. Bonemeal is used almost exclusively for the timber industry which grows large spruce and jungle trees, which provide a much higher yield of wood logs and saplings. Industry Palus Urbem's current main industries are mining and defence-related goods (golems and weapons). Goruid is largely focused on tools (shears, fishing rods, farming hoes, etc.), though it will eventually inherit Palus Urbem's main industries as administration of the realm shifts to Elysia. Aphthonis is planned to be a major centre for firework rocket production. Mining Previously the Thornia Maritime Company had an exclusive license for mining across Great Thornia. However, the Crown of Great Thornia has absorbed the company and now directly controls mining operations. Caves and ravine systems are in the process of being connected in Elysia into a single large-scale mine. Underground processing centres and warehouses are being built to allow for more efficient mining. State symbols All three component territories share the same banner (despite one being an independent state) known as the Eight Arms or the Elysian Field, which consists of a yellow banner (representing the wheat fields of Central Goruid) with a red saltire (representing the rivers of the territories filled with salmon), with a white cross (representing the iron found in great quantity across the land) sitting above. This banner was re-created as a stained glass installation on the ceiling of the Elysia Convention Centre. The former banner of Thornia (blue stripes on a white background; infamously known as the beach towel banner) continues to be an unofficial symbol of the Palus Capital Territory and the Bay of Palus. Religion The territories of Great Thornia follow an amalgamated belief system that combines aspects of traditional Umic Aiwanism with indigenous deities from Goruid and Aphthornis, and legendary deities from colonists in what is now Palus Urbem. Administrative divisions Top-level administative divisions exclusive to Great Thornia are simply known as regions and are directly governed by the Crown of Great Thornia. Areas within the League of Palus are also referred to as regions. They are under both Thornian and League law, and are also under the protection of the League's allied military. Overseas regions are territories governed as private estates of the Crown, or are overseas villages under the protection of Great Thornia.